on this last mixed media painting i experimented with the effect of making it look distressed, like peeling paint. it was fun to do and much easier than i thought. then i combined the background i had created on canvas with one of my illustrations using a white pastel pencil to give it the impression of having used chalk for the drawing.

somehow chalk evokes childhood memories, from drawing on the sidewalk to writing and drawing on the blackboard at school (only our blackboards at school were dark green). this is why i felt it was fitting to draw the illustration like that. it gives it something youthful, temporary, passing, as if the moment could easily be wiped away with a sponge. and since this moment can wiped away so easily it must be treasured and held on to so much more.

on a different note, i hope all of you that were in sandy's way are doing well. i know there are still many who don't have power or even worse. gladly, my family up north was only out of power for a while but are doing well other than that, which we are incredibly thankful for.

How funny. . . . I was just thinking I wanted to do something sort of similar. I hadn't thought of using a pastel crayon though - I thought I would use chalk and seal it under clear a clear fixer. I love the way you draw the children. Lovely!